1. Field
The present disclosure relates to maintaining configuration settings for a computer system and, in particular, to systems and methods for managing registry keys in a network environment.
2. Description of the Related Art
Certain operating systems, such as MICROSOFT WINDOWS, utilize a database that holds configuration settings used by the operating system. For instance, the database can include data files used to store the configuration settings and/or user profiles the operating system accesses to control hardware and software components installed on the computer. Loss of the registry can be catastrophic since few applications can function properly on the system hard disk without the user engaging in the time-consuming process of reinstalling the applications.
For example, the WINDOWS operating system includes a registry that is organized into a tree-like folder structure. The highest-level logical section is often referred to as a “hive,” which further includes “keys” and “sub-keys.” Within these lower-level logical sections are stored actual data or information, referred to as “values,” which include specific settings used internally by the operating system.
Registry keys can oftentimes be very lengthy, making manual entry difficult. Complicating the matter even further, when a client system crashes and must be rebuilt, a user is oftentimes required to remember which registry keys were installed prior to the crash and to manually reinstall such keys to the client system. As can be appreciated, not only can the rebuilding process be difficult and time intensive, a user may not be familiar with and/or know how to access all the registry keys that were previously present on the client system.